Rory McIlroy, the PGA Championship, and being right with God

Professional golfer Rory McIlroy came back to win a stunning victory in the PGA golf tournament a few weeks ago. Despite weather delays and difficult conditions, a thrilling battle ensued on the final round with the last shot played in near darkness.

I enjoy playing golf ever since my father taught me how to swing a club. My parents still have pictures of me swinging a sawed-off 3-wood with electrical tape for a handle. Back in the days when a 3-wood was made of real wood, I can still remember hearing the crack of the hickory when my wood hit the ball into the air.

While watching golf on television, I began to draw a comparison between Rory McIlroy, the PGA Championship, and being right with God.

The world says that everybody has the ability to play golf. The key is to learn and to practice. Par is the standard score from which to judge a golf

er’s success. Those willing to take the time and energy to learn have the potential to be able to attain that score. Only God can determine what the par is for each individual. Sometimes during the course of a game, the golfer will hit the ball into the water. Sometimes it’s the golfer’s fault and sometimes it’s how the wind blows. The player must suffer a penalty stroke and it becomes very difficult to par the hole. The good news is that there is another hole to play. Every player is encouraged to keep trying until the round is over and hope that God is merciful with your score.

The Bible teaches a different perspective.

A Christian believer who trusts in God’s promises from the Bible, LOVE to play golf. The key is not on how you play the game, but who is playing for you. Par requires perfection. This means that every hole requires a hole-in-one and there are eternal consequences associated with failure. A Christian believer comes to the knowledge that there is no possible way for success. Thankfully, God provided a substitute in Christ. His life, death, and resurrection fulfilled the standard of perfection. Faith receives his score of perfection in place of our scores of imperfection. A life in Christ joyfully plays golf for the sake that this activity brings God great joy. The pressure is off. The trophy has already been won.

When sharing God’s Word with others, we can emphasize the joy and peace of what Christ has already done for us. We can emphasize the positives of God’s promises as the object of our faith versus the stresses of trying to look like a PGA champion.

“Although Moses did a lot of good, that goodness did not give him a pass. He suffered some major consequences. When you think about it, that holds true not just in God’s courtroom, but in courtrooms around the world. When a good and upstanding citizen breaks the law, he or she isn’t given a pass. They still get speeding tickets. They still receive prison sentences. The good they do does not cancel or outweigh the bad. Sin – all sin – is serious. There are no misdemeanors when it comes to sin. Not only is every sin a felony, every sin is a capital crime. Every sin is deserving of the death penalty. That is something that we need to remember for ourselves. That is something that we need to emphasize with our LDS friends. We need to do that because only when people see the serious straits that they are in will they become serious about getting help.” (Click here to read more.)